Editor’s Note: The following is a story from Tara, one of our surrogates. We are so grateful for the generous women like her who choose to become gestational carriers to help others build the families they’ve always wanted.

I first heard about Tomorrow’s Parent’s International from a friend of mine. She said that her lawyer from a previous surrogacy was opening a new agency in the Atlanta area and that I should look into them. I am so glad I listened! I was matched quickly with an absolutely amazing couple. We clicked instantly – the phrase ‘meant to be’ comes to mind. Everything went perfectly from start to finish! We successfully got pregnant with twins on the very first try! My husband, who is active duty military, was handed orders for us to move on to another duty station. The IP’s were so sweet, they let me move in with them to complete this pregnancy. My water broke on her 40th birthday which began the roller coaster of labor. Baby girl was born vaginally and baby boy was born via c-section (he was not ready to give up the good food ?). Seeing the overwhelming joy on their faces as they became parents to their long-awaited (BEAUTIFUL) children sealed the deal for me, I knew I wanted to do this all over again. Sara and Marcus came to visit me in the hospital and I told them right then, “I can’t wait to do this all over again!”.

Once I was 100% recovered from that pregnancy/delivery, my husband and I began discussing a second journey. It didn’t take much to convince my husband, he knew how passionate I was about this so he gave me 100% of his support. I emailed Tomorrow’s Parent’s International and told them I am ready to rock and roll again! They presented me with two very different couples. I ended up choosing the path I was most familiar with. This second couple used the same IVF clinic and doctor I went to for my first journey. I was comfortable with the familiarity and said let’s go for it! Unfortunately, this match didn’t pan out the way we all had hoped. I quickly realized this couple wasn’t right for me and we parted ways. I am beyond thankful my Tomorrow’s Parent’s International family supported my decision.

It didn’t take long before I was matched with another couple who had the same hope of adding to their family. I went into this second journey with the mindset that everything would be the same as my first one; but, that was not the case. This time around the first transfer did not take, nor did the second one. It all came down to the third try. There was only one embryo left – whether we liked it or not, this was it. Low and behold, that one little nugget was the golden ticket. We were FINALLY pregnant! Fast forward to 39 weeks – we delivered a beautiful, healthy baby girl. Their family was complete!

When that pregnancy ended, I was so excited to become a part of the Tomorrow’s Parent’s International family as part of the staff. Since I was working for the agency, I told myself I didn’t need to do another surrogacy. I would still be able to make an impact on the world of infertility, just from a different standpoint. One day when I was working, I came across the profile of a same sex couple based in the state we would soon be moving to. I felt drawn to this couple. I read and re-read their profile over and over again. Finally, I contacted Sara and said, “I want to be their surrogate”. She, of course, was amazing and totally supported me. This couple and I spoke on the phone and I could feel the instant connection, I knew this was going to be a good journey! After two IVF attempts, we were, again, pregnant with twins! This pregnancy was a roller coaster to say the least. Late last month we delivered their twins via c-section. Everything about the delivery went perfectly! This couple can now proudly call themselves parents to two beautiful little babies.

When I think about these families and how I was able to bring five babies into this world, I can’t help but smile. I am beyond thankful each of these families still include me and my family in their lives. The joy I get from seeing pictures, videos, and even getting to play with and snuggle these kiddos can’t be put into words. I am, also, thankful for the support of my incredible husband. There is no way I would have been able to do any of this without him by my side. This journey has been incredible and I wouldn’t change a single thing about it. I am blessed and honored these people allowed me to be a part of their stories.